Calls for racial equality by white voices have a cyclical quality to them. 

One, something terrible happens; a Black person killed at the hands of the police. Two, the attention of white America becomes razor-focused on the issue; this killing was terrible and unjust. Three, there may be some small change, maybe not; at least things were not as bad as they once were. Four, the issue fades into the periphery of the mainstream; some white person writes an editorial on how white America treats the calls for racial equality as a tide — a phenomenon to simply wait out.

Last summer, with racial protests at the forefront of every news cycle, several major journalistic publications were forced to reckon with a culture of discrimination. Condé Nast, publisher of magazines including the New Yorker, Bon Appétit and Vogue, faced allegations of racist content published under the complacency of white executives. The New York Times had to release a statement in response to public accusations of underrepresentation by people of color.

The cyclical nature of racial inequality’s presence in the media and underrepresentation of people of color at major publications are two harrowing concepts. When placed next to each other, the gravity of the situation compounds.

Racial inequality does not exist in white minds in the same way it does in people of color. White people do not walk down the street with anxiety that they would be killed by police simply because of the way they look. These police killings are real issues, and to break the cycle of their fade from the media, journalism needs more diversity.

Within all media — movies, magazines, TV shows, podcasts — journalism serves a specific tangible purpose. It keeps the public informed on the issues affecting their lives. The issues affecting people of color, do not affect white Americans in the same way. White Americans do not share all their experiences with discrimination, their unique perspective. A gap is formed when white journalists report on every news story. 

The Iowa State Daily struggles with this issue, as do most newspapers. For example: this article was written by the Iowa State Daily Editorial Board, a panel of around six students who meet once a week to form a general opinion on a current event and then share it with the public. How many people of color are on this panel? Absolutely zero. 

The idea of this panel having only white students is worrying to say the least. For one, Iowa State is not a white-only school. The idea this board represents the voices of all Iowa State students is a façade. In grim reality, this board is the voice of Iowa State’s white students — harsh, maybe, but true.

The lack of diversity is in no way intentional or purposeful. Diversity is an important consideration at the Daily; however, it’s an issue nonetheless. 

This does not even cover the Iowa State Daily’s newsroom. Every newsroom, every opinion section, every newspaper can do better. In 2018, only 17 percent of newsroom staff were people of color, and only 13 percent held leadership positions — despite the fact that racial and ethnic minorities make up 40 percent of the population. 

How can newspapers, particularly student newspapers, do better in achieving diversity? 

The recruitment procedure for student journalists is a nice place to start. Typically, at the beginning of each semester, a representative from the publication will tour classes with students that might enjoy journalism, e.g. media and English classes. Perhaps these recruitment sessions can target more diverse class settings. There are entire departments devoted to African American studies, Indigenous studies and Latinx studies on campuses.

Recruitment is also extremely effective when implemented at a personal level. Imagine an editor comes to you, personally, and asks you to join the staff. It is a lot harder to say no, and it is here that white privilege comes into play. What is the primary makeup of the Iowa State Daily? White students. Who are white students most comfortable talking to? White students. It is a feedback loop that perpetuates itself semester after semester. 

Lastly, this board suspects there is real, valid fear among people of color that their voices will be silenced at this publication. The same thing happens in media all across the country. It’s not editorializing to say that there is a lack of representation in journalism, it’s simply true. 

There is little words can do to alleviate this fear. However, let us say this. Stories written by white staff writers will only ever have a white perspective. A complete view is missing without people of color providing their own unique lens to the world. It is the variety of diversity that makes the world around us exciting and unique. We cannot paint a picture of events with only one color.